Books to Borrow Williamsburg Public Library Recommends

Just how bulletproof was George Washington? What is the secret of Oppaymolleah’s Curse? What really crash-landed one wintry evening in Kecksburg in 1965? Read about this and more in “Legends & Lore of Western Pennsylvania.”

Thomas White not only provides interesting legends and lore, but the history surrounding the stories. Spinning a fascinating web of narratives, White chronicles tales that reach from the Alleghenies to Pittsburgh, through Philadelphia and Gettysburg. Look for buried treasure to find General Braddock’s buried gold. Learn about the original man of steel, Joe Magarac and what he meant to the Pittsburgh steelworker.

Author and PA native, Thomas White, grew up in the suburbs of Pittsburgh. Perhaps that’s why the legends and lore have stuck with him enough to inspire the idea for writing this book, as well as “Haunted Roads of Pennsylvania” and “Supernatural Lore of Pennsylvania: Ghosts, Monsters and Miracles (American Legends)” and many others. Readers will find tales about a lost B-25 Bomber in the Monongahela River, a mysterious crash site in Kecksburg, the urban legend of the Green Man, and much more. There are tales that take place during the French and Indian War and World War II, tales spanning the 1700s to the 2000s.

Interesting conspiracy theories may make readers minds wonder. Were the Wright Brothers really the first men to fly? According to one story, a Pittsburgh man flew first. White claims Gustave Whitehead, originally from Germany, may have successfully taken flight several times before the famous ground-breaking flight the Wrights made in 1903.

Take a “legend trip” to see and experience phenomena for yourself. White includes legend trip destinations, scattered throughout Western Pennsylvania. There are plenty of urban legends and ghost stories among the rich folklore of Pennsylvania, and only so much can fit into one volume. White does a keen job of choosing fitting tales that draw the readers attention and leave us wanting more. The author invites readers to “shiver over the ghostly lore of Western Pennsylvania.”